The Northern Light: November 3-9, 2022

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CAP prepares for annual holiday toy store

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Community Assistance Program (CAP) volunteers are busy gearing up for this year’s holiday toy store.

The Blaine nonprofit began accepting gift donations and opened registrations for its Community Toy Store on November 1. The annual program allows Blaine and Birch Bay area families living on limited in comes to purchase toys for their children at the toy store in December. Families may purchase toys and gift cards that are dis counted about 75 percent, meaning $15 will purchase $60 worth of gifts. Proceeds will be donated to The Bridge Communi ty Hope Center emergency fund, Valley Church Essentials and Loads of Love.

“I love the way it has a ripple im pact in the community by supporting different organizations, getting parents involved and letting them support the community with their shopping dol lars,” said CAP volunteer Laura Vogee. “It supports so many people in different sectors of the community.”

The store will remain the same as last year, with an addition of free Christmas ornament craft kits being handed out as stocking stuffers, Vogee said.

Donations

People can donate gifts online through the Launching Successful Learning Store in Bellingham and Amazon wish lists. More information is available on CAP’s website. People can also purchase new, $20-50 toys such as craft and science kits, Legos, building toys, musical toys, scoot ers, book sets, sleeping bags and play tents. Toys should be for children 2-12 years old, not gift wrapped and have the regular re tail price included.

Gift cards of $25 value can be purchased for middle and high school students. Event organizers recommend cards from Barnes and Noble, Best Buy, Michaels, Happy Teen, Happy Treats, Hobby Lob by and discount store combination cards.

CAP doesn’t need Old Navy or American Eagle gift cards as there are still many left over from the 2021 store.

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Trick-or-treating on Birch Bay berm returns

Over 20 WCSO officers, including SWAT, respond to hostage situation in Birch Bay

Over 20 law enforcement officers re sponded to a Birch Bay home after a man allegedly pointed a gun and threatened to kill two people he knew on October 29. The victims were not physically injured.

The man was arrested and booked into Whatcom County Jail just after midnight October 30 on assault in the first-degree domestic violence and second-degree felo ny harassment charges.

Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office

deputies responded to the 8600 block of Harbor Drive around 9 p.m. October 29 for a report of a male who pointed a handgun at an individual who was known to him, WCSO spokesperson Deb Slater told The Northern Light in an email. The man also allegedly verbally threatened to kill that individual and another person who was present.

The man refused to exit the residence when WCSO’s Special Response Unit ar rived, Slater said. Deputies obtained a search warrant to enter the residence to

Kulshan Community Land Trust opens affordable housing survey for Blaine residents

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Kulshan Community Land Trust has opened a survey for Blaine residents to provide comments on future affordable housing projects. The 10-minute survey will be open through November.

The questionnaire asks the survey tak er’s housing situation, housing issues and barriers to becoming a homeowner. Participants can enter information anon

ymously or provide contact information for a follow-up. The survey is available in Spanish and people who need translation assistance for another language or survey accommodation can contact Kulshan at 360/671-5600 or info@kulshanclt.org.

“The survey helps us know the level of interest from people who live and work in Blaine,” Kulshan executive director Dean Fearing said. “It helps us grow our wait list.”

Kulshan is working to bring achiev able homeownership to Blaine for work ing-class families earning around $40,000 to $100,000 per year. The Belling ham-based group owns the land under the home, which preserves the home’s afford ability for future buyers. The homeowners pay property taxes and take care of the home like any other homeowner.

arrest the man. He then exited the home around 11:20 p.m. and was arrested, trans ported and booked into jail, Slater said. Deputies evacuated the victims, who had been sheltering in place, when it was safe to do so.

A total of 22 law enforcement person nel from the SWAT and Crisis Negotiation Team responded to the scene, Slater said According to jail records, the man is be ing held for a first-degree assault charge on $100,000 bail. He also has a separate drunk driving charge.

s Firefighters, princesses and witches were among those who picked up candy from Birch Bay residents and businesses along the berm in celebration of Halloween. The Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce held its second annual trick or treat on the berm event on Octo

ber 29. Chamber event coordinator Sacha Sanguinetti estimated around 1,000 to 1,300 children attended, although he said it’s difficult to give an exact count. See more Birch Bay and Blaine Halloween photos on pages 10 and 15.

Photo by Molly Ernst

Birch Bay

Simon Sefzik for

Public hearing scheduled on manufactured homes in east Blaine

Hi, I’m Mary!

The city of Blaine’s planning commission will hold a public hearing November 10 regarding a proposal to fix zoning code incon sistencies impacting the develop ment of manufactured homes in east Blaine. The hearing is set for 6 p.m. in city council chambers, 435 Martin Street.

Skip and Katie Jansen, de velopers of the upcoming East Harbor Hills neighborhood, submitted the private zoning code amendment request to the city earlier this year.

The proposed amendment would change the zoning code for residential planned unit de

Toy store ...

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Cash donations can also be made on CAP’s website or by a mailed check. Checks should be made out to Community Assis tance Program with “Community Toy Store” in the memo line and mailed to 508 G Street in Blaine.

can be dropped off at sev eral locations in Blaine, Birch Bay and Semiahmoo, in addition to many churches expected to par ticipate. Donations will be ac cepted until Friday, December 2. Below are a list of locations and what is accepted.

• Blaine Library – toys and gift cards

• Blaine Senior Center – toys and gift cards

• Pacific Building Center – toys only

• Windermere Realty, Birch

velopments (PUDs) in the city’s planned residential zone. As the code is currently written, man ufactured dwellings aren’t al lowed in residential PUDs, but are allowed in the city’s planned residential zone, which runs east of 15th Street to city limits and from the U.S./Canada border to H Street Road, according to the project proposal. City coun cil will ultimately vote on the amendments if they are approved by planning commission. If the code is changed, approv al would still need to be given on the number of manufactured homes in East Harbor Hills, or

Bay Square – toys and gift cards

• The Bridge Community Hope Center in Birch Bay – toys and gift cards

• Birch Bay Village Rec Center

– toys and gift cards

• Semiahmoo Golf Club – toys and gift cards

• Semiahmoo Marina Cafe –toys and gift cards

• Inn at Semiahmoo – toys and gift cards

• Semiahmoo Athletic Club –toys and gift cards

Registrations

Eligible families must live with in Blaine school district boundar ies, meet the income requirement for free or reduced lunch and not be receiving other holiday gift as sistance. Families living in Blaine school district boundaries with homeschooled or preschool chil dren can register for the toy store as long as they meet the income requirements.

any other future residential PUD development, said Stacie Pratsch ner, the city’s community devel opment services director.

Written comments need to be submitted before the public hearing by 4:30 p.m. Wednes day, November 9. Comments can be sent by mail, email and fax to Stacy Clauson, of the community development ser vices department, at 435 Mar tin Street, suite 3000, in Blaine. Comments can be emailed to cdscomments@cityofblaine. com with “East Harbor Hills LLC” in the subject line or faxed to 360/332-8330.

Toys will be set up in a storelike setting at Valley Church, 1733 H Street, unit 260 in the Cost Cutter plaza. Parents will shop during designated time slots from Thursday, December 8 to Saturday, December 10, with the possibility for addi tional dates. Registration will be open until Sunday, Novem ber 27 online and by phone for those who cannot sign up on line, 530/828-5195. Preregistra tion is required.

CAP is a nonprofit that serves Blaine, Birch Bay, Custer and Point Roberts residents through the Thanksgiving baskets, winter coat drive and crisis assistance.

To register for the 2022 CAP Community Toy Store, visit blainecap.org or call 530/8285195. More information is avail able on the CAP website for those registering and donating to this year’s store.

s The city of Blaine’s planned residential zone, which runs east of 15th Street and from the U.S./Canada border to H Street Road. Currently, manufac tured homes are permitted within the planned residential zone, but not within residential PUDs. The planning commission will hold a November 10 public hearing on whether to allow manufactured homes in residential PUDs. Map courtesy of the city of Blaine

Blaine man arrested for allegedly spanking and bruising child

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A Blaine man was arrested October 28 after he allegedly spanked a child for over 30 min utes as discipline causing exten sive bruising.

Whatcom County Sheriff’s Of fice (WCSO) spokesperson Deb Slater told The Northern Light in an email that around 7 p.m. Octo ber 28 WCSO deputies respond ed to the 1300 block of H Street Road to reports of child abuse.

The victim’s parent presented deputies with photos showing extensive bruising of the juvenile victim, whom the man knew.

Deputies contacted the man, who admitted to spanking the child for a prolonged period as discipline. The man said he stopped when the child complied with his wishes and stopped screaming, Slater said.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, a witness said the man spanked the child over

their pants five times in succes sion and then another six times before taking the child into an other room and spanking them for an estimated 30 minutes.

The man was arrested for sec ond-degree assault of a child and booked into Whatcom County Jail. He was released October 31 after meeting his set $10,000 appearance bond. He has an ar raignment scheduled in What com County Superior Court for 8:30 a.m. November 18.

U.S. District Court dismisses Whatcom County election fraud lawsuit

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A U.S. District Court in Seat tle recently dismissed a lawsuit alleging Whatcom County gov ernment committed fraud in the November 2020 election. This was one of eight nearly identical lawsuits a nonprofit organization filed across Washington, six of which the district court dismissed on September 30 and October 3. The two cases that remained in state courts were dismissed, but have pending appeals.

On behalf of Gig Harbor’s Washington Election Integrity Coalition (WEiCU), three What com County residents filed a law suit in September 2021 alleging Whatcom County auditor Diana Bradrick and the county govern ment committed election fraud during the 2020 election. The lawsuits were initially filed in county superior courts, and later moved to the U.S. District Court of Western Washington.

According to judge Lauren King’s September 30 opinion, the Whatcom County case was dis missed because the federal court did not have jurisdiction over it and returning the case to the state

Survey ...

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The group also helps families with down payment assistance. Through a shared agreement, Kulshan sets an annual 1.5 per cent equity increase so that homeowners can grow equity while paying off their mortgage principal. The organization has helped over 200 Whatcom Coun ty families own a home, accord ing to a Kulshan press release on the survey.

Kulshan and other affordable housing advocates have been advocating to city staff and city council for projects at the old city hall property on H Street and in a section of Grandis Pond, an upcoming east Blaine neighborhood of 1,000 homes. If approved, Fearing said the old city hall property has the potential to start the soonest, in the next two to three years, while the Grandis Pond proper ty still needs infrastructure that

court would be useless.

“The court has no supplemen tal jurisdiction over the remain ing state law claims, and because remand to state court would be futile,” she wrote.

The opinion also went on to describe that the court deter mined WEiCU and the Whatcom County residents didn’t suffer “concrete, particularized, and actual or imminent” injury from the alleged election misconduct.

The Whatcom County plain tiffs alleged a livestream video appeared to show a county elec tion worker marking ballots by moving her pen across a line and then making a circle on each ballot near the governor’s race. The plaintiffs believed there was a high percentage of write-in votes for a Republican candidate. The Whatcom Coun ty plaintiffs were not trying to decertify the election, according to court documents.

Whatcom County auditor Dana Bradrick responded to the ballot tampering allegation, ex plaining that the election worker was preparing to duplicate ballots that wouldn’t scan. The lawsuit claimed the response was cover

could be years out.

The two projects could bring 70 or more homes, 20 to 30 of which could be condominiums or co-op housing units at the old city hall property, Fearing said. The survey will gauge Blaine residents’ and workers’ interest in co-op housing, which is a new model for Kulshan. Unlike condominiums where an indi vidual owns the unit, co-ops allow the building residents to buy the building and individuals purchase shares of the building that appreciate over time. Fear ing said this model is especially helpful to people with poor cred it who don’t qualify for a bank

ing up the alleged tampering.

The group also claimed the auditor’s office denied their public records request for ac cess to ballots or electronic im ages of the ballots. The court found the requested informa tion was lawfully exempt from public records requests.

A separate election lawsuit was filed in Washington Su preme Court, in part, for alle gations that non-citizens were fraudulently voting in the No vember 2020 election. The court ordered WEiCU and its attorney to pay $28,000 in sanctions on June 1 for bringing a “case to tally devoid of legal merit,” ac cording to a June 1 press release from the Washington state At torney General’s Office. The at torney general’s office also filed a complaint against WEiCU’s lawyer to the Washington state Bar Association.

At the time of the case filings in state court, Kim Wyman, Washing ton’s then Republican secretary of state, told The Everett Herald that the lawsuits represented a new re ality election administrators face being questioned about the validity of the election process.

loan, but qualify for purchasing shares in co-op housing.

A Blaine home owned through Kulshan could cost from $174,000 to $400,000, Fearing said.

“Blaine needs enough afford able homes to attract and re tain skilled workers, to support growing families, and to make sure we have enough homes for seniors and other people with a fixed income,” according to the press release.

Visit bit.ly/3UdWIsE to take the survey in English and vis it bit.ly/3NoGRoJ to take the survey in Spanish. For more in formation about Kulshan, visit kulshanclt.org.

The Northern Light is published weekly by Point Roberts Press Inc.

Locally owned and managed, the com pany also publishes the All Point Bulletin, covering Point Roberts, Mount Baker Ex perience, covering the Mt. Baker foothills area, Pacific Coast Weddings annual guide, and the summer recreation guide Waterside as well as maps and other publications. Point Roberts Press Inc. is a member of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Associ ation, Chambers of Commerce of Belling ham/ Whatcom County, Birch Bay, Blaine and Point Roberts and the Bellingham/ Whatcom County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors.

Letters Policy

The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor. Please include name, address and daytime telephone number for veri fication. Letters are limited to 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. The letters to the editor column is primarily intended to allow readers to voice their opinions on local issues of general interest to local readers. A fresh viewpoint will increase the likelihood of publication. Thank-you letters are lim ited to five individuals or groups. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Con sumer complaints should be submitted di rectly to the business in question or the lo cal chamber of commerce. Only one letter per month from an individual correspon dent will be published. Email letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com.

Publisher & Managing Editor Patrick Grubb publisher@pointrobertspress.com

Co-publisher & Advertising Director Louise Mugar lmugar@pointrobertspress.com

Editor Grace McCarthy grace@pointrobertspress.com

Reporter Ian Haupt ian@pointrobertspress.com

Creative Services Doug De Visser, Ruth Lauman production@pointrobertspress.com

Office Manager Jeanie Luna info@pointrobertspress.com

Sales Molly Ernst, Gary Lee sales@pointrobertspress.com

Over 39,000 ballots cast ahead of November 8 OpiniOn

The Editor:

My name is Eugene Kurchin and I am a U.S. citizen who was deported from Can ada into Blaine back in August. I was in Canada looking for a better life and the Canada Border Services Agency deport ed me and dumped me on the streets of Blaine. I am mentally ill and autistic so I was sent to St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham. The staff there told me it was my fault that I ended up homeless in Washington state and discharged me pre maturely. I eventually took several buses to the Seattle airport and flew back home to Arizona.

I would like to share my story in the newspaper.

Eugene Kurchin Tucson, Arizona

The Editor: The society we live in is so dysfunc

Letters

tional. Everywhere you look, you can find blaring examples: From our home lives, to how we treat our pets and the farm-factory animals, to our government politicians.

I believe this dysfunction is due to the lack of a basic necessity: a lack of love. A feeling of love translates into kindness, compassion, gentleness, patience, under standing and forgiveness.

Why is there such a lack of love? Be cause we grew up feeling unloved. We don’t know how to love. They did a sur vey of grownups, and 80 percent of them said they felt no one loved them growing up, not their parents, not their teachers, no one.

Why is it that children grow-up feeling they’re not loved? It’s called the “cycle of child abuse.” How do we break this vi cious, heart-breaking cycle? By teaching our children how to problem solve, not by any punishment or violence, but to teach

CiviC Meetings

Birch Bay Water & Sewer District: Second and fourth Thursdays, 4 p.m., district offices, 7096 Point Whitehorn Road, Birch Bay. Info and Zoom meeting link: bbwsd.com.

Blaine City Council: Second and fourth Mondays, 6 p.m., Blaine City Council chambers, 435 Martin Street. Info and virtual meeting login: ci.blaine.wa.us.

Blaine Planning Commission: Second and fourth Thursdays, 6 p.m. Info: blainepc@cityofblaine.com. Info for joining Zoom meetings: bit.ly/2CiMKnk.

them how to talk out any problems they may have. We need to empower our chil dren, not over-power them.

The way to break the cycle of child abuse is to have positive parenting classes taught in our high schools, before students gradu ate, get married and have children of their own. These classes need to teach commu nication skills, based on mutual respect and dignity between parent and child (and also between teacher and student). This would build a foundation of caring for one another and showing kindness. Treating someone with mutual respect and dignity is also a form of love.

Cindy Kisska Birch Bay

Blaine-Birch Bay Park and Recreation: Second Tuesday, 5:30 p.m., location varies. Info: bbbparkandrec.org. Virtual meeting info: bbbparkandrec.org/board-meetings.

Blaine Park and Cemetery Board: Second Thursday, 9 a.m., virtual meeting. Info: 360/332-8311, ext. 3330.

Blaine School Board: Fourth Monday, 7 p.m., Blaine school district offices. Info and virtual meeting link: blainesd.org.

North Whatcom Fire & Rescue: Third Thursday, 11 a.m., Station 61 at 9408 Odell Road and via Zoom. Info: nwfrs.net.

noon on Monday.

s November 2022 election ballots need to be turned in by 8 p.m. Tuesday, November 8. As of November 1, the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office has received 39,006 ballots. North Whatcom County ballot drop box locations include Blaine Library, North Whatcom Fire and Rescue and Custer Elementary School. Citizens can complete or update voter registration at the Whatcom County Courthouse, 311 Grand Avenue in Bellingham. Stamps are not required to return ballots by mail and ballots must be postmarked no later than November 8. Voters who return ballots by mail on Election Day need to check the last collection time on the mailbox. Voters can check if the auditor’s office has received their ballot by visiting votewa.gov. For more information on the election, visit whatcomcounty.us/elections.

Photo by Grace McCarthy

Whatcom County Council October roundup ...

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The latest news from October Whatcom County Council meetings Whatcom Conservation District rates and charges Whatcom County Council ap proved, in a 4-3 vote, a system of rates and charges applied to all properties located in incorpo rated and unincorporated What com County for 10 years to fund Whatcom Conservation District. Councilmembers Tyler Byrd, Ben Elenbaas and Kathy Kershner were opposed.

Whatcom Conservation Dis trict assists land managers with maintaining sustainable, prof itable and productive agricul ture, fisheries and other natu ral resource-based industries,

according to its website. It has an operating budget of about $2.3 million and is currently funded through state and fed eral grants as well as local and regional inter-local agreement contracts.

Starting January 2023 through 2032, landowners will be charged about $5 per parcel and $2.99 for designated forest land. The district estimates the charge will generate $510,529 per year in revenue.

“While I appreciate the work that the conservation district does, and I like to see their bud gets full and robust, I do not believe in this way of funding them,” Elenbaas said. “I think the state should be funding them, as they have in the past.”

Blaine Senior Center Council unanimously autho rized an interlocal agreement with the city of Blaine to fund staffing and operation at the Blaine Senior Center for two years in the amount of $127,460. This agreement includes a 3 per cent increase in funding from the last two-year agreement.

Child care stabilization at Opportunity Council Council authorized a con tract with Opportunity Council to provide nearly $1.5 million in funding to support child care stabilization.

Opportunity Council supports child care providers through coaching, technical assistance, behavioral consultation and pro fessional development oppor

tunities. It also provides infor mation and referrals to licensed child care facilities.

The agreement started Octo ber 26 and will terminate De cember 31, 2024, if no action is taken before then.

Whatcom Racial Equity Commission Council added in a 4-3 vote, with Byrd, Elenbaas and Kershner op posed, a new chapter to Whatcom County Code to create a Whatcom Racial Equity Commission.

Whatcom County and the city of Bellingham contracted Chuckanut Health Founda tion to conduct outreach and consult a group of community stakeholders to form the com mission. The group will address the county’s racial equity com

mitments and priorities. What com County and Bellingham are jointly funding $600,000 to the committee.

Drug enforcement overtime pay Council passed multiple or dinances for the reimbursement of overtime pay for Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) detectives and deputies.

Nearly $40,000 total was reim bursed to two detectives as part of an interlocal agreement with the Drug Enforcement Adminis tration. As part of two separate agreements with the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, two WCSO deputies re ceived $2,500 in overtime for contributing to two different op erations called “Hardeyes” and “Operation Puffy Shirt.”

Burn ban ends in unincorporated Whatcom County

The Whatcom County Fire Marshal’s Office lifted burn ban restrictions for outdoor burning in unincorporated areas of What com County. The burn ban ended on October 26 after being in ef fect since mid-July.

The fire marshal’s office re moved the restrictions because of rain and increasing fuel moisture levels, according to its October 25 announcement.

Besides legal recreational fires, outdoor burning requires a per mit. The Outdoor Burning In formation Line, 360/778-5903, offers verbal burn permits and the county’s planning and devel opment services office, at 5280 Northwest Drive, offers written burn permits for fires larger than 4 feet by 4 feet.

Washington State Department of Natural Resources, federal

forest or federal park lands have different outdoor burning reg ulations and must be contact ed before starting a fire. People must also contact the fire de partments servicing Point Rob erts (WCFD 5), Lummi Island (WCFD 11) and Sandy Point (WCFD 17) before starting a fire in those areas.

A permanent open burning ban remains in effect for cities and

urban growth areas in Whatcom County, including Blaine, Birch Bay and Cherry Point. More in formation on the permanent ban can be found on Northwest Clean Air Agency’s website at nw cleanairwa.gov or by calling the agency at 360/428-1617.

For more information about outdoor burning requirements, visit the county’s website at whatcomcounty.us/firemarshal.

Westside Pizza places first in Blaine chamber contest

Civil Service Commission

Regularly meets one Tuesday of the month for about an hour. One position to fill a partial term ending December 31, 2025 One position to fill a full term ending December 31, 2028

If you are interested in serving on the Civil Service Commission, applications and descriptions of duties are available online at www.cityofblaine.com.

CITY OF BLAINE

Information on how to listen to the meeting live will be on the City Council agenda which is located on the City’s website homepage under Your Government, City Council, City Council Agenda. Please check the agenda prior to each meeting as the call in number or location may change.

Monday, November 7 4:30pm – Special City Council Meeting

Thursday, November 10 9:00am – Parks and Cemetery Board Meeting 10:30am – Public Works Advisory Meeting 6:00pm – Planning Commission Meeting

Friday, November 11

Offices Closed – Veterans Day

Monday, November 14 4:30pm – Study Session: 2023 PW Budget 6:00pm – City Council Meeting: Public Hearing on 2023 Budget

Contact information for staff and Councilmembers can be found on the City’s website.

Call (360) 332-8311 or visit our website. www.cityofblaine.com

THE CITY OF BLAINE is currently seeking members for the following commission:

s Westside Pizza won the Blaine Chamber of Commerce’s 2022 scare crow contest. Eight visitor information center volunteers voted on the winner from the five locations that participated. Photos by Grace McCarthy

spOrts

Sports roundup: Girls soccer advances to 2nd place district game

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Blaine girls soccer advanced to the district 1 runner-up game on Thursday, November 3 at 7:30 p.m. at Borderite stadi um after beating Mount Baker High School 5-0 November 1. The Lady Borderites will face Meridian Thursday night. If they win, they advance to the bi-district games.

On Tuesday night, the girls took control of possession but struggled to make any of their early chances count, while the Mountaineers looked to play counter-attacking soccer. Blaine beat Mount Baker twice in the regular season.

The turning point came late into the first half as senior Madeleine Ernst beat the hes itating Mount Baker goalkeep er to a ball behind the Mount Baker defense. Ernst knocked it past the onrushing keeper who slid through the striker inside the penalty box. Deny ing a goal-scoring opportunity, the referee had to produce a straight red card.

Senior Kristina Roby stepped up to take the penalty as one

of Mount Baker’s forwards re placed their sent-off keeper. Roby slotted the ball into the bottom left corner, giving Blaine a 1-0 lead going into halftime.

“I think we controlled the game before the red card but the red card changes everything, es pecially when it’s the keeper,” head coach Gio Quesada said.

The one-player advantage made all the difference in the second half. Roby grabbed her hat trick, scoring twice more, and sophomore Juliana Zuzarte and freshman Beatrice Dickson each got one.

Blaine came into the game on the back of a 1-0 loss to Meridi an, who they play Thursday, with two starters injured. Seniors Ava Curtright and Piper Nissen made up half of the Borderites defense, but picking up injuries at the end of the season Quesada has had to change his system.

Senior midfielder Evellina Yuryev has filled in for Curt right, who Quesada said is the best defender in the confer ence, at center back. And the team has relied on younger players in midfield.

Quesada said he’s thankful for

all the work the experienced and inexperienced players have put in to the team this season and in playoffs. He said he’s been asking the team to work extra hard for the injured players.

“Last night it worked and I hope it works [Thursday] as well,” Quesada said.

Volleyball

The Lady Borderites finished their season at Meridian High School November 1 as they lost 3-1 to Lynden Christian in the first round of playoffs.

The girls finish their season with a 4-13 record.

Football

The Borderites lost 44-7 to Nooksack Valley High School October 28 in their last confer ence game of the season.

Blaine will play Cedar Park Christian Friday, November 4 for its last regular season game. The Borderites have a 1-8 over all record this season and were 0-4 in conference.

s Juliana Zuzarte turns in midfield in Blaine’s 5-0 win over Mount Baker November 1 at Borderite stadium. Photo by Ian Haupt

s Blaine High School’s girls soccer lost 1-0 to Meridian on October 29.

Photo by Molly Ernst

s Deja Dube spikes in the Lady Borderites’ 3-1 loss to Burlington-Edi son High School on senior night October 25. Photo by Janell Kortlever

Semiahmoo Resort sous chef Kelly Stanley’s buttermilk biscuits

grees. In a mixing bowl, com bine all ingredients except buttermilk.

Transfer your dry mixture to a food processor and process in 3-4 second bursts until the mixture looks sandy.

Roll your dough out on a floured surface so that it is about 3/4-inch thick. You can cut your circles with a floured glass, a circular cutter or use a knife to cut into squares.

oven to 400 de

Return your dry mixture to the original mixing bowl and gently stir in cold buttermilk until just combined. Be careful not to overmix, or your bis cuits will be tough.

Place on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.

Make it your own

Our favorite way to enjoy Chef Kelly’s biscuits is to craft a ‘Bis cuits & Gravy’ breakfast sand

wich using Misty Meadows Farm eggs and Skagit River Ranch pork breakfast sausage patties with a home-made gravy.

This recipe is excellent with fresh chopped rosemary or chives, shredded sharp gou da cheese, cracked pepper, or minced sundried tomatoes and garlic. Add these ingredients when you mix in your butter milk for a unique flavor.

Originally from Oakland, Cal

ifornia, Semiahmoo Resort’s sous chef Kelly Stanley has lived in Whatcom County for 15 years. She graduated from Bellingham Technical College in 2013 with a culinary arts degree and has worked for Semiahmoo for near ly 10 years. She’s always been interested in food and cooking, and got her first job at a bakery at age 15. She loves learning to cook new cuisines, especially Indian.

BMS monster mash dance

s Semiahmoo Resort sous chef Kelly Stanley’s buttermilk biscuits. Courtesy photo

s North Whatcom Fire and Rescue and Blaine Police Department employees attended Blaine Middle School’s monster mash dance on October 28.

Photo courtesy Karmen Terris

Health & Wellness

Prediabetes is on the rise. Good news: It’s reversible

In March 2021, the Mount Baker Foundation (MBF) launched a regional Kidney Health Awareness Initiative to increase understanding of the connection between kidney dis ease, diabetes and heart disease.

The earliest phase of the ini tiative focused on Chronic Kid ney Disease (CKD), which is called a silent epidemic because symptoms often do not appear until the disease is advanced and harder to treat. Diabetes is the top cause of kidney disease.

Because November is National Diabetes Awareness month, MBF intends to inform our region that positive and actionable steps to prevent Type 2 diabetes are with in everyone’s reach.

Prediabetes is reversible through early detection, achiev able lifestyle changes and drug treatment, if necessary, to prevent Type 2 diabetes.

The MBF initiative is a vol unteer group, including Angela Krzysiek, a dialysis social worker, whose passion is to educate the public about the causes of CKD.

“Because more young people are being diagnosed with diabetes, it’s important that we identify prediabetes earlier,” she said.

“Prediabetes is detected when blood sugar levels are rising. Pre diabetes can be reversed before developing Type 2 diabetes with lifestyle changes.”

Dr. Sandhya Gelou, a diabetol ogist and volunteer, agrees that

early lifestyle interventions to prevent diabetes are essential.

“One problem is you may not even know you have prediabetes or diabetes. You can be symp tom-free for years,” she said. “However, once complications of diabetes begin to occur, near ly every aspect of your health can be affected, including your blood vessels in your kidneys, eyes, and nerves throughout your body.”

Krzysiek encourages people to ask their primary care providers to order routine testing for pre diabetes, such as an A1C test that measures blood sugar over the past two to three months; fasting blood sugar tests to mea sure blood sugar after an over

night fast; or glucose tolerance tests that measure blood sugar before and after drinking a glu cose liquid.

If a person’s tests indicate pre diabetes, simple lifestyle chang es can reverse the condition. Though weight loss is often a key strategy, it’s important to know that not everyone needs to lose a massive amount of weight, Gelou said. “Even a change as small as a 5 percent reduction in weight can have substantial metabolic improvements.”

The CDC’s Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) has shown that people with prediabetes who lost a modest amount of weight – 5 to 7 percent (10 to 14 pounds for a person weighing 200 pounds) –

with the help of a structured life style-change program cut their risk of developing Type 2 diabe tes by 58 percent.

“Take control of your health today by checking your blood sugar levels and finding ways to reduce your risk for developing diabetes,” Krzysiek said.

To enroll in Washington State University Whatcom County Extension’s CDC Diabetes Pre vention Program, contact Kate Foster at kate.foster@wsu.edu. Foster is trained to help with life style modifications to prevent the onset of Type 2 diabetes.

Take the one minute prediabe tes risk test on the CDC website at bit.ly/3DdwxLO.

Courtesy of Mount Baker Foundation

PeaceHealth allows two visitors per patient in Whatcom facilities

PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center and PeaceHealth Medical Group clinics in Whatcom County recently relaxed visitation policies as Covid-19 cases have declined.

Starting October 26, patients can have two people visit at a time. Previously, only one visitor was al lowed at a time.

The change came as Whatcom County had maintained a “moder

ate” Covid-19 transmission risk lev el for more than seven days, which meets the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines for the lower risk level for healthcare facilities.

Washington state Department of Health and CDC guidelines require visitors to wear a mask in health care settings. Visitors will be asked to self-screen by reviewing the post

ers displayed that include Covid-19 symptoms, according to an October 26 PeaceHealth announcement.

Visitors may use the main cafete ria, the Grounds & Grains Café and the Gift Nook gift shop at Peace Health St. Joseph in Bellingham.

“PeaceHealth remains cautious and is prepared to tighten up pro tocols should these trends again reverse,” the announcement reads.

File photo

Health & Wellness

Op-Ed: Turn back the clock on prediabetes with family activities

B y D r . S an D hya G elou

I am a diabetologist, mean ing I specialize and focus on the prevention and treatment of diabetes. We need to shine a spotlight on prevention because prediabetes, in most cases, is re versible before it progresses to Type 2 diabetes. That is certain ly good news.

Now is an opportune time to laser-focus that prevention spot light since November is National Diabetes Month.

My interest in diabetes started with trying to help members of my own family take charge to im prove their health. You don’t have to have prediabetes or diabetes to learn about prevention. If we take action early, we can prevent dangerous complications. I want to empower every patient to feel confident enough to take charge of their health. Bring questions to your appointments.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Pre vention (CDC), it is estimated that 96 million U.S. adults aged 18 years or older had prediabe tes in 2019.

Most medical and public health professionals agree that we must address the social determinants of health (SDoH) to develop strategies to promote social and physical health in every commu nity, for every age and at every stage of life.

SDoH are the conditions in the environments where people are born, live, learn, work, play, wor ship and age that impact a wide range of health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks. Healthcare experts turn to housing security, quality food access and transportation inter ventions to address SDoH, all of which are concerns in Whatcom County and beyond.

Type 2 diabetes increased in young people during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Obesity and Type 2 diabetes present significant public health challenges. The link between the two conditions is important because too many extra pounds substantially increases the risk of Type 2 diabetes, which is a major cause of premature mortality and contributes to a range of longterm health conditions includ ing heart disease, microvascular complications including eye dis ease, foot disease and chronic kidney disease. People living in deprived areas and some minori ty ethnic groups are at particular ly high risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, which is associated with higher patient care costs and wid er costs to society. These scenari os are not inevitable, but they are likely if we carry on as we are.

These suggestions below won’t change SDoH, but they are things that families can do to help their kids avoid being diagnosed with diabetes when they are combined with healthier eating. Setting a new normal can lead to healthier habits for everyone in the family

– and it can be fun. Moderate ex ercise is one family strategy, start slow and build up at a pace that works for you.

• Aim for 60 minutes of phys ical activity a day, but 10- or 15-minute sessions are okay

• Stay positive and focus on progress

• Encourage your child to join a sports team

• Keep a jump rope, hand weights and resistance bands at home

• Throw a frisbee

• Limit screen time

• Take walks together – after a meal is a great time

• Move more – both in and out of the house such as rak ing leaves, shoveling snow and gardening

To sum up: About 1 in 3 people under the age of 21 is at risk for

Type 2 diabetes due to weight is sues and inactivity.

Young people with Type 2 dia betes develop complications fast er than those who develop Type 2 diabetes as adults.

Remember, even little chang es add up to a healthier life. Take a walk, ride a bike, blast your music and dance, without spending a penny. Daily phys ical activity has lots of health benefits – better sleep, weight loss, stress reduction and im proved blood pressure.

These positive changes can start right at home. Consider this thought: Healthy aging begins early in life. So, look at this as a family affair.

Dr. Gelou is in private practice in Bellingham and volunteers with the Mount Baker Foundation Kidney Health Awareness initiative.

s Dr. Sandhya Gelou.

Courtesy photo

Birch Bay celebrates Halloween by trick-or-treating on the berm

Photo courtesy Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce

Photo courtesy Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce

Photo by Anna Johnson

Photo courtesy Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce Photo courtesy Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce

Photo courtesy Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce

Photo courtesy Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce

Photo by Molly Ernst

View more photos on thenorthernlight.com

Help Wanted

Shipping/Customer Service Manager.

Knowledge of computers, shipping, and inventory management helpful, for an E-Commerce business in Ferndale. Willing to train. Salary $18-22 per hour, DOE. Call 360/312-3173.

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR WHATCOM COUNTY In re the Estate of: STEVEN WALTER RAUCH (AKA STEVE WALTER RAUCH), Deceased. No. 224-01007-37.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS.

Judge David E. Freeman

The Administrator named below has been appointed and has qualified as Adminis trator of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of lim itations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Administrator or the Administrator’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of the claim and fil ing the original of the claim with the court in which the probated proceedings were commenced. The claim must be present ed within the later of: (1) thirty days after the Administrator served or mailed the no tice to the creditor as provided under RCW 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of the notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 AND 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the decedent’s probate and nonprobate assets.

Date of Filing of Notice to Creditors: October 17, 2022 with Clerk of Court: Date of First Publication: October 20, 2022

Name of Administrator: STEVEN RAUCH

Attorney for Administrators: Steven D. Avery, WSBA #35262

Address for Mailing or Service: Avery Elder Law, P.S. 801 Samish Way, Ste. 202 Bellingham WA 98229 Telephone: (360) 325-2550 Email: steve@averyelderlaw.com DATED: October 17, 2022 AVERY ELDER LAW, P.S. STEVEN D. AVERY, WSBA #35262 Attorney for Administrator: STEVEN RAUCH

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR WHAT COM COUNTY In re the Estate of: JOHN SANDLIN REGIONS, Deceased. No. 224-01031-37.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS.

Judge Lee Grochmal.

The Administrator named below has been appointed and has qualified as Adminis trator of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of lim itations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Administrator or the Administrator’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of the claim and fil ing the original of the claim with the court in which the probated proceedings were commenced. The claim must be present ed within the later of: (1) thirty days after the Administrator served or mailed the no tice to the creditor as provided under RCW 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of the notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 AND 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the decedent’s probate and nonprobate assets.

Date of Filing of Notice to Creditors: October 25, 2022 with Clerk of Court: Date of First Publication: October 27, 2022

Name of Administrator: JULIA MCCAFFREY

Attorney for Administrators: Steven D. Avery, WSBA #35262

Address for Mailing or Service: Avery Elder Law, P.S. 801 Samish Way, Ste. 202 Bellingham WA 98229 Telephone: (360) 325-2550 Email: steve@averyelderlaw.com DATED: October 25, 2022

AVERY ELDER LAW, P.S. STEVEN D. AVERY, WSBA #35262

Attorney for Administrator: JULIA MCCAFFREY www.averyelderlaw.com

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR WHATCOM COUNTY In re the Estate of: TERESA LAMB-RAMIEREZ, Deceased. No. 22-4-01027-37.

NOTICE TO CRED

ITORS. Judge Lee Grochmal.

Judge David Freeman

The Personal Representative named below has been appointed and has qualified as Personal Representative of this estate. Any person having a claim against the dece dent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable stat ute of limitations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Personal Rep resentative or the Personal Representa tive’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of the claim and filing the original of the claim with the court in which the probated proceedings were commenced.

The claim must be presented within the later of: (1) thirty days after the Personal Representative served or mailed the notice to the creditor as provided under RCW 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of the notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 and 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the decedent’s probate and nonprobate assets.

Date of Filing of Notice to Creditors: October 19, 2022 with Clerk of Court: Date of First Publication: October 27, 2022

Name of Personal Representative: CINDY MAXWELL

Attorney for Personal Representatives: Steven D. Avery, WSBA #35262

Address for Mailing or Service: Avery Elder Law, P.S. 801 Samish Way, Ste. 202 Bellingham WA 98229 Telephone: (360) 325-2550 Email: steve@averyelderlaw.com DATED: October 19, 2022.

AVERY ELDER LAW, P.S. STEVEN D. AVERY, WSBA #35262

Attorney for Personal Representative: CINDY MAXWELL

The Administrator named below has been appointed and has qualified as Adminis trator of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of lim itations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Administrator or the Administrator’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of the claim and fil ing the original of the claim with the court in which the probated proceedings were commenced. The claim must be present ed within the later of: (1) thirty days after the Administrator served or mailed the no tice to the creditor as provided under RCW 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of the notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 AND 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the decedent’s probate and nonprobate assets.

Date of Filing of Notice to Creditors: October 21, 2022 with Clerk of Court: Date of First Publication: October 27, 2022

Name of Administrator: LEONA GOLLEN

Attorney for Administrators: Steven D. Avery, WSBA #35262

Address for Mailing or Service: Avery Elder Law, P.S. 801 Samish Way, Ste. 202 Bellingham WA 98229 Telephone: (360) 325-2550 Email: steve@averyelderlaw.com

DATED: October 21, 2022

AVERY ELDER LAW, P.S. STEVEN D. AVERY, WSBA #35262

Attorney for Administrator: LEONA GOLLEN www.averyelderlaw.com

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF Whatcom In Re the Estate of Paul D. Hodge, Deceased. NO. 22-400983-37. PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDI TORS. (RCW 11.40.030) JUDGE: Robert E. Olson.

The personal representative named below has been appointed as personal represen tative of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of limitations, present the claim in the manner as provid ed in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mail ing to the personal representative or the personal representative’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of the claim and filing the original of the claim with the court in which the probate proceedings were commenced. The claim must be pre sented within the later of: (1) Thirty days after the personal representative served or mailed the notice to the creditor as provid ed under RCW 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of the notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 and 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the decedent’s probate and nonprobate assets.

Date of First Publication: November 3, 2022

Personal Representative: Gary D. Hodge 1411 E. Axton Rd Bellingham, WA 98226 Attorney for the Personal Representative: Katti Esp 301 Prospect Street Bellingham, WA 98225

Address for Mailing or Service: Katti Esp 301 Prospect Street Bellingham, WA 98225

Court of Probate Proceedings Superior Court of Whatcom County and Cause Num ber: Cause No. 22-4-00983-37

The Administrator named below has been appointed and has qualified as Adminis trator of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of lim itations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Administrator or the Administrator’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of the claim and fil ing the original of the claim with the court in which the probated proceedings were commenced. The claim must be present ed within the later of: (1) thirty days after the Administrator served or mailed the no tice to the creditor as provided under RCW 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of the notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 AND 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the decedent’s probate and nonprobate assets.

Date of Filing of Notice to Creditors: October 25, 2022 with Clerk of Court:

Date of First Publication: October 27, 2022

Name of Administrator: JACCI KNISKERN (AKA JACCI L. YOUNG)

Attorney for Administrators: Steven D. Avery, WSBA #35262 Address for Mailing or Service: Avery Elder Law, P.S. 801 Samish Way, Ste. 202 Bellingham WA 98229 Telephone: (360) 325-2550

Email: steve@averyelderlaw.com

DATED: October 25, 2022

AVERY ELDER LAW, P.S. STEVEN D. AVERY, WSBA #35262

Attorney for Administrator: JACCI KNISKERN (AKA JACCI L. YOUNG) www.averyelderlaw.com

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR WHAT COM COUNTY In re the Estate of: EDITH REGIONS, Deceased. No. 22-4-0103237. NOTICE TO CREDITORS. Judge Evan P. Jones

IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR WHATCOM COUNTY In re the Estate of: JAMES M. LAVERY, Deceased. No. 224-01014-37.

NOTICE TO CREDITORS.

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IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF WHATCOM In the matter of the Estates of DENNIS KEN NETH HARVEY BECKETT and SHARON ANGELEEN BECKETT, Deceased. No. 22-4-00998-37. PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDITORS (RCW 11.40.030). Judge Evan P. Jones

The Co-Personal Representatives named below have been appointed as Co-Per sonal Representatives of the above es tates. Any person having a claim against the deceased DENNIS KENNETH HARVEY BECKETT and/or the deceased SHARON ANGELEEN BECKETT must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of limita tions, present the claim in the manner provided by RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Co-Personal Rep resentatives or the Co-Personal Rep resentatives’ Attorney at the address stated below, a copy of the claim, and filing the original of the claim with the Court in which the probated proceedings have commenced. The claim must be presented within the later of: (1) thirty days after the Co-Personal Representa tives mailed the notice to the creditor as provided under RCW 11.40.020 (1) (c); or (2) four months after the date of first publication of this notice. If the claim is not presented within this time frame, the claim will be forever barred except as otherwise provided in RCW 11.40.051 or 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to claims against both the probate and nonprobate assets of the Decedents.

DATE OF FILING OF NOTICE TO CREDI TORS WITH CLERK OF THE COURT: October 14, 2022

DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION: October 27, 2022

CO-PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVES: DEANNA BECKETT and JANICE FONTANA

ATTORNEY FOR CO-PERSONAL REPRE SENTATIVES: Mark W. Stowe, WSBA #16655

ADDRESS FOR MAILING OR SERVICE: Stowe Law PLLC, 276 Boundary Bay Rd, P.O. Box 129, Point Roberts, WA 98281 Phone: (360) 945-0337

Email: stowelawpllc@outlook.com

DATED this 14th day of October 2022.

STOWE LAW PLLC: Mark W. Stowe, WSBA# 16655 Attorney for Co-Personal Representatives

LENA ROAD

Road Rules: What’s the deal with cautionary speed signs?

B y D ou G D ahl

Question: Something that has not made sense to me since I started driving (49 years ago) is the apparent discrepancy in the posted speed limit (for ex ample 50 mph) and the caution ary speed signs entering sharp turns (say 35 mph). My under standing is that it is legal to fly (unsafely) around the 35 mph corner at 50 mph. Why does the legal speed limit not change when there are tight turns?

Answer: I think the funda mental issue here is an incom plete understanding of our speed laws. And please don’t take that as a criticism of you personally. I mean that collectively. So I guess you could say I’m criticizing all of us. I’ll explain what I mean in a moment, but first let’s consider some unintended outcomes if we did create regulatory speed zones for every curve that currently has a cautionary sign.

I’ll start with the obvious. It would mean more signs. You’d have a sign alerting drivers to a reduced speed limit ahead, a sign with the new speed limit, and after the curve another sign with the previous speed limit. You might expect that I’m about to lament that more signs means more tax money spent on posts and metal. That’s true, but from a traffic safety lens, that’s not what I’m concerned about. There is such a thing as too many signs.

Traffic signs should give driv ers the information they need, but not overwhelm them. Sure, it’s only a couple more here, but those add up, and eventually drivers pay less attention overall to important signs.

Then there’s the political as pect. I don’t mean partisan con flicts. I’m talking about the pro cess that we go through to set speed limits. The Revised Code of Washington specifies maximum speed limits for various kinds of roads. Local jurisdictions can set different limits by conducting an engineering study and then hav ing the responsible political body vote to approve the revised speed limit. One traffic engineer I spoke to said they had over 600 loca tions with advisory speed limits in their county. That’s a lot of votes (and time) that both engi neering departments and elected officials could spend on high er-priority issues.

Yes, practical and political is sues could be overcome if there was a need to make a change. But I’ll argue that the law already kind of makes advisory signs the rule to follow. We tend to only think of speed restrictions as the numbers on the black and white speed limit signs, but that should be a secondary consider ation for a driver choosing how fast to go. The law about speed begins by stating that “No per son shall drive a vehicle on a highway at a speed greater than is reasonable and prudent under the conditions and having regard to the actual and potential haz ards then existing.”

Traffic engineers calculate the threshold of instability for a curve, and then set the advisory speed below that threshold. The sign alerts drivers to a potential hazard, and if that driver contin ues to drive at the posted speed limit when that speed is in excess of what’s safe, that’s a violation of the law. You might not see officers doing speed patrols in curves, but if you were to review citations is sued after traffic crashes, you’d see many that list “Speed too fast

for conditions” as the violation. As drivers, we should be refram ing our concept of the speed limit to be something like, “drive at a speed that’s safe, given all the in fluencing factors (like weather, road conditions, pedestrians and cyclists, curves, hills, and other drivers) with an upper limit of what’s on the sign.

Doug Dahl is a manager with the Washington Traffic Safety Com mission, Region 11 and publishes TheWiseDrive.com.

OBITUARIES

Larry Dale Ploghoft

September 4, 1944 – August 8, 2022

It is with the deepest sadness that we an nounce the passing of Larry Dale Ploghoft on August 8, 2022, in Bellingham, after a difficult but short battle with cancer. He was 78 years old. At the time of his passing, Larry was a res ident of Blaine. A memorial service will take place in November in Moses Lake, WA, which will be his final resting place.

Larry was born in Bellingham on September 4, 1944, to Mary Sheerer (Johnson) and Dale Ploghoft. He was raised in Bellingham and attended Bellingham schools. He married Judy Montague on July 20, 1963, in Moses Lake, and they had two children, Brian and Mark. They were married for 59 years.

Throughout his life, Larry lived in many different places and traveled frequently for his work in the tire business as a manager of tire retreading plants. He worked for Michelin, Brad Ragan, and OK Tire, to name a few, and also was once the owner of Royal Tire in Royal, WA. He leaves behind a legacy of hard work and dedica tion to his job and being a provider for his family.

When he was younger, Larry loved racing cars and competed in drag racing in Spokane. As he got older he spent much of his time fixing up or repairing vehicles in his garage. He was also a proud Seattle Seahawks fan and always had a stockpile of Mountain Dew on hand. He loved being a grandparent and vacationed often with his family. In his later years, he enjoyed the quiet of retirement, which also allowed him to tinker with cars and see his loved ones more frequently. He was a favorite uncle to many and had a soft spot in his heart for his grandkids.

Larry is survived by his wife, Judy; their two children Brian (Tiffiny) and Mark (Alice); and his nine grandchildren, Paige (Benjamin) Blood, Lauren (Nic) Barrus, Daina (Daemon) Fassler, Dylan Ploghoft, Logan Ploghoft, Brady Ploghoft, Joshua Ploghoft, Nathan Ploghoft, and Eliza Ploghoft. He was also a grandpa to five great-grandchildren, Alaric, Olivia, Xander, Raelynn, and Liam. Additionally, Larry is survived by one sister, Karen Levin, from Marysville, WA, and numerous nephews and nieces. He was pre ceded in death by his mother and his father. Larry leaves behind a legacy of hard work, dedication, and love. He will be forever missed at every family gathering. The family would like to thank their friends in the community and the Blaine Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for their love and support.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Friday, November 25, 2022, at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 1036 West Rose Ave., Moses Lake, Washington.

S. Kenneth Trupp

Beloved brother, uncle, friend and ani mal lover, Ken Trupp, died peacefully Fri day evening, October 28, after battling can cer for several years, complicated by recent kidney failure.

Born 81 years ago, Ken was the beloved son of the late Bertha Minnie Trupp and Bernard Trupp. Loving brother of Morty Trupp and the late Philip Trupp. Ken leaves many adored nieces and nephews and the many friends that he loved.

After serving in Vietnam and retiring as an English professor at Glendale College, Ken moved to Blaine over 20 years ago. He rap idly stepped into an active role in the community, attending city council meetings, joining the Blaine United Church of Christ, the food bank, volunteering and leading the crisis assistance group in CAP (Community Assistance Program), and rescuing elderly dogs and cats through the Alternative Humane Society in Bellingham. Perhaps Ken is known by most of Blaine community because he walked his elderly rescue dogs four times a day, rain or shine through the streets of Blaine, stopping and talking to many of us as they walked.

Memories and stories of how Ken touched your life can be left on the Kenneth Trupp page at the Legacy.com website. At his re quest no service is planned. Memorial gifts can be made to any of the above charities or one of your choice.

Oct. 23, 7:53 p.m.: Fight on Crocket Road.

Oct. 24, 7 p.m.: Trespass on Blaine and Arnie roads.

Oct. 24, 7:10 p.m.: Hit and run on Harborview and Birch Bay-Lyn den roads.

Oct. 24, 8:01 p.m.: Vehicle prowl on Birch Bay Drive.

Oct. 24, 9:15 p.m.: Suspicious circumstances on Birch BaySquare Street.

Oct. 25, 9:07 a.m.: Harassment on East Street.

Oct. 25, 9:06 a.m.: Vandalism on Henley Street.

Oct. 25, 11:17 a.m.: Death in vestigation on Leeside Drive.

Oct. 25, 4:24 p.m.: Drugs on Birch Bay Drive.

Oct. 25, 6:31 p.m.: Welfare check on Birch Terrace Drive, Custer.

Oct. 25, 8:28 p.m.: Attempted suicide on Birch Bay Drive.

Oct. 26, 12:02 p.m.: Harassment on East Street.

Oct. 26, 12:33 p.m.: Harassment on Birch Bay-Lynden Road.

Oct. 26, 1:36 p.m.: Vehicle prowl on Birch Bay Drive.

Oct. 26, 1:36 p.m.: Theft on Birch Bay Drive.

Oct. 26, 5:02 p.m.: 911 hangup on Loomis Trail Road, Custer.

Oct. 27, 4:20 a.m.: Civil problem on Outrigger Loop.

Oct. 27, 9:28 a.m.: Property

found on Oertel Drive.

Oct. 27, 9:32 a.m.: Motor vehicle accident on H Street and Delta Line roads.

Oct. 27, 9:29 a.m.: Alarm audi ble on Portal Way, Custer.

Oct. 27, 9:52 a.m.: Suspicious vehicle on Harbor Drive.

Oct. 27, 10 a.m.: Suspicious person on Oertel Drive.

Oct. 27, 12:42 p.m.: Traffic haz

ard on Delta Line Road, Custer.

Oct. 27, 2:50 p.m.: Fraud on Clamdigger Drive.

Oct. 27, 4:31 p.m.: Vandalism on Fir Tree Lane.

Oct. 28, 11:39 a.m.: Death in vestigation on Maple Way.

Oct. 28, 2:11 p.m.: Civil problem on Flambeau Road.

Oct. 28, 3:04 p.m.: Fraud on Clamdigger Drive.

pOLiCe repOrts

21, 12:31 a.m.:

Alder Street.

21, 12:53 a.m.: Noise ordi nance on 14th Street.

Oct. 21, 1:51 a.m.: Collision on Peace Portal Drive.

Oct. 21, 8:43 a.m.: Vandalism on Peace Portal Drive.

Oct. 21, 10:29 a.m.: Suspicious circumstance on H Street.

Oct. 21, 12:57 p.m.: Found prop erty on Peace Portal Drive.

Oct. 21, 10:50 p.m.: DUI on I-5 northbound.

Oct. 22, 10:41 a.m.: Assist citi zen on C Street.

Oct. 22, 12:52 p.m.: Neighbor hood dispute on B Street.

Oct. 22, 11:49 p.m.: Overdose on E Street.

Oct. 23, 11:36 p.m.: Behavioral

CrOssWOrd

health issue on B Street.

Oct. 24, 2:19 a.m.: Audible alarm on Boblett Street.

Oct. 24, 4:28 p.m.: Neighbor hood dispute on 15th Street.

Oct. 24, 4:30 p.m.: Juvenile problem on E Street.

Oct. 25, 1:22 p.m.: Death inves tigation on Ruby Street.

Oct. 25, 3:48 p.m.: Trespass on Peace Portal Drive.

Oct. 25, 10:45 p.m.: Parking violation on C Street.

Oct. 25, 10:57 p.m.: Parking violation on B Street.

Oct. 25, 11:15 p.m.: Parking violation on 6th Street.

Oct. 26, 7:45 p.m.: Domestic dispute on Martin Street.

Coming up

Thanksgiving Baskets Registration: Friday, October 14–Friday, November 11. Free, ready-to-cook Thanksgiving dinners for those with limited financial resources living in Blaine, Birch Bay, Custer and Point Roberts. Reservations required at blainecap.org or call 360/383-8027. Baskets will be available for pick-up on Tuesday, November 22, noon-2:30 p.m., in Blaine.

Community Toy Store Toy Drive: November 1–December 2. High qualitytoys in the $20–$50 range are needed for Blaine/Birch Bay’s holiday gift assistance program. Unwrapped toys may be dropped off at the Blaine Library, Blaine Senior Center, Pacific Building Center, Birch Bay Village Rec Center, and Semiahmoo Golf Club, marina cafe, athletic club and resort. Online direct delivery and monetary donation options are also available. Visit blainecap.org for full details. Sponsored by the Community Assistance Program. For questions, email toystore@blainecap.org.

Community Toy Store Registration: Families who need holiday gift assis tance can get full details and register online November 1-27 at blainecap.org or call 530/828-5195. Sponsored by the Community Assistance Program. Trivia at The Vault: Thursday, November 3, 7 p.m., 277 G Street. This week’s theme: General knowledge. Info: thevaultwine.com.

Music at The Vault: Friday, November 4, 7 p.m., 277 G Street. Featuring: Jerry Steinhibler Trio. Info: thevaultwine.com.

Bellingham Symphony Orchestra: Sunday, November 6, 3 p.m., Mount Baker Theatre, 104 N Commercial Street, Bellingham. Featuring Anthony Mc Gill, clarinet and Ashley Becker, soprano. Tickets: mountbakertheatre.com.

Crafting Club: Saturday, November 5, 3–4p.m., Blaine Library, 610 3rd Street. Bring your arts and crafts project and join other crafters for a time of sharing and socializing while you work on your project.

Job Help: Tuesday, November 8, 11 a.m.–12:30 p.m., Blaine Library, 610 3rd Street. Need Help Getting a Job? An employment specialist will be at the library to help with resumes, job searches, interview coaching, and more. Trivia at The Vault: Thursday, November 10, 7 p.m., 277 G Street. This week’s theme: Thanksgiving. Info: thevaultwine.com.

Music at The Vault: Friday, November 11, 7 p.m., 277 G Street. Featur ing: Mary Ellen Lykins and Craig Adams. Info: thevaultwine.com.

Lummi Island Holiday Studio Tour: Saturday, November 12 and Sunday, November 13, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Over a dozen artists and craftspeople offering their work at 11 locations around the island. Enjoy paintings, drawings, prints, notecards, jewelry, photography, sculpture, glass, pottery, metalwork, stonework, quilts, clothing, knitwear, and more. Map and info: lummi-island.com/artists-studio-tour.

Blaine Senior Center Big Bucks Bingo: Saturday, November 12, noon–3p.m., Blaine Senior Center, 763 G Street. Over $275 in prizes. Early bird starts at 12:30 p.m. Regular bingo at 1 p.m. Eight games $15. Info: 360/332-8040.

Wildlife Photography From a Designer’s Perspective: Monday, No vember 14, 6 p.m., Blaine Library, 610 3rd Street, Join us for a presenta tion with wildlife photographer Mike Caroff.

ANSWERS: THENORTHERNLIGHT.COM

tides

November 3 to 9 at Blaine. Not for navigation.

49° 0’ 0”N - 122° 46’ 0”W

DATE TIME HEIGHT TIME HEIGHT

Th 3 12:33 am 6.2 7:24 am 1.0

2:54 pm 9.7 9:31 pm 4.0

Fr 4 2:25 am 6.4 8:30 am 1.9

3:26 pm 9.6 10:07 pm 2.6

Sa 5 3:51 am 7.0 9:28 am 2.9

3:56 pm 9.6 10:43 pm 1.4

Su 6 4:03 am 7.7 9:22 am 3.8

3:24 pm 9.5 10:17 pm 0.3

Mo 7 5:03 am 8.4 10:14 am 4.8

3:50 pm 9.3 10:51 pm -0.4

Tu 8 5:55 am 9.0 11:02 am 5.6

4:14 pm 9.1 11:25 pm -0.9

We 9 6:45 am 9.4 11:50 am 6.2

4:38 pm 8.8 11:59 pm -1.1

Weather

Precipitation: During the period of October 24-30, 3.8 inches of precipitation was recorded. The 2022 yearto-date precipitation is 24.5 inches.

Temperature: High for the past week was 61°F on October 28 with a low of 46°F on October 27. Average high was 53°F and average low was 49°F.

Free Business Seminar: Tuesday, November 15, 5–7 p.m., Blaine Boating Center, 235 Marine Drive. Eric Grimstead with the WWU Small Business Development Center will discuss how to find and retain good employees, marketing strategies, know your financials. Cost: $5. Pizza dinner pro vided. Registration required at blainechamber.com. Sponsored by Sahara Pizza.

Birch Bay Chamber Annual General Meeting: Thursday, November 17, 4–6 p.m., Birch Bay Leisure Park clubhouse. Speakers, networking, refresh ments. Info: birchbaychamber.com.

Ongoing

Blaine Food Bank: 500 C Street. Open Mondays 9 a.m.–noon, Wednes days 5–7 p.m., and Fridays 9 a.m.–noon. Delivery options available.Info:360/332-6350 or blainefood@hotmail.com.

The Bridge Food Distribution Program: Fridays 3:30–5 p.m., The Bridge Community Hope Center, 4815 Alderson Road. Registration required at thebridgehope.com or call 360/366-8763. Volunteers welcome.

CAP Clothing Bank: Mondays and Fridays, 9 a.m.–noon and Wednesdays, 5-7 p.m. 508 G Street. The Community Assistance Program clothing bank is now located in the basement of the CAP Center providing free clothing and linens. Donations accepted only during open hours or by special arrangement. Info: blainecap.org or 360/392-8484.

The Bridge Clothing Bank Boutique: Open Wednesday–Saturday, 10 a.m.–6 p.m, The Bridge Community Hope Center, 4815 Alderson Road. Donations by appointment, call 360/366-8763.

Meals on Wheels Frozen Meals: Thursdays 11:30 a.m.–noon, Blaine Se nior Center, 763 G Street. Adults 60+ pick up five frozen meals. Suggested donation $5 per meal or whatever is affordable. First come, first servebasis. Info: 360/332-8040.

Meals on Wheels Hot Lunches: Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m., Blaine Senior Center, 763 G Street. Suggesteddonation of $5 per meal or whatever is affordable. First come, first serve basis. As of October 17 this will become five days a week. Info: 360/332-8040.

Parents of Addicted Loved Ones (PAL) Meetings: Tuesdays 6:30–8 p.m., CAP Center, 508 G Street, Blaine. A support group for parents of adult children dealing with addiction, but open to anyone (18 or old er) seeking to learn a better way to help an addicted loved one. Evi dence-based, structured curriculum and peer support at no cost. Info: palgroup.org or email Bev and Dave at wamillards@comcast.net.

Alaska Packers Association Cannery Museum: Open Saturdays and Sundays, 1–5 p.m., 9261 Semiahmoo Parkway. Free, donations welcome.Info: 360/371-3558.

Blaine Serenity Al-Anon: Mondays, noon–1 p.m. on Zoom. Have you been dealing with alcoholism with a friend or family member? Info: Jerry lyn at 360/305-2246.

Alcoholics Anonymous Meetings: Tuesdays at 7 p.m., Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at noon, women’s meeting Mondays at 4 p.m., Blaine United Church of Christ basement, 855 4th Street. Info: 208/750-8772 or shannonsessions2020@gmail.com.

Submissions to Coming Up should be sent to calendar@thenorthernlight.com no later than noon on Monday.

Report by Blaine Police Department.

Freeman’s house tops spooky Blaine Halloween events

Photo by Anna Johnson

Photo by Anna Johnson

Photo by Anna Johnson

Photo by Anna Johnson Photo by Ruth Lauman

Photo by Ruth Lauman

Photo by Ruth Lauman

Photo by Ruth Lauman

Southwest to fly Bellingham to Denver seasonally

B y G race M c c arthy

Southwest Airlines announced October 27 that it

ver starting April 2023. The sea sonal flights will be nonstop and only offered on Saturdays.

“As passenger traffic returns to pre-pandemic levels, the

continue working with South west to

service to Den

passengers to

executive

Rob Fix wrote

ment. The Port of Bellingham op erates Bellingham International Airport (BLI).

The announcement comes nearly a year after Southwest flew its inaugural flight into Bell ingham last November. Since it started operating in Bellingham, the Dallas-based airline compa ny has offered direct flights to Oakland twice daily and Las Ve gas once daily, which connect to other Southwest flights headed to major cities.

The flight from Bellingham to Denver International Airport will depart at 11:40 a.m. on Saturdays

and arrive at 3:15 p.m. The re turn flight leaves Denver at 10:35 p.m. and arrives in Bellingham at 12:25 a.m. Tickets from Bell ingham and Denver are available now at southwest.com.

“There is strong demand for eastbound flights from travelers who like to avoid the traffic and crowds at major airports in Seat tle and Vancouver, B.C.,” wrote Bobby Briscoe, commission pres ident for the Port of Bellingham, in a statement. “BLI offers one of the best travel experiences in the nation and we are thrilled South west is expanding its service des tinations.”

In addition to Southwest, Alas ka Airlines, Allegiant Airlines and San Juan Airlines offer flights from Bellingham.

File photo